Pankaj Rag: The perfect relacement for Tripurari Sharan

By

Omkar Sapre

, TNN|

Mar 08, 2008, 01.23 AM IST

Pankaj Rag was born in Muzaffarpur, Bihar, in 1964. He attended St Stephens College in Delhi and graduated in history. He then did his M Phil in modern Indian history from Delhi University. A renowned poet, he has had several of his works published. His articles on modern Indian history, especially on nationalism and the 1857 revolt have been published in renowned journals such as the Social Scientist. Rag has also been the Commissioner of Directorate of Archeology, Archives and Museums in Bhopal. His interest in films is evident in his massive collection of songs as well as some extensive research in films and culture which this 1990 batch IAS officer has done. Two years ago, Rag authored a book on film music directors from 1931 to 2005 which was published in 2006. As FTII gets closer to celebrating its golden jubilee in 2010, the new director spells out his plans for the institute.

Is director, FTII a dream assignment?

I have had a strong interest in films and culture since childhood, so I decided to apply for the post and yes, thankfully everything worked out well. Pune is a cultural centre and it is a great honour to be the director at India���s premier film institute.

Your stint at the institute spans three years. What are your immediate plans for FTII?

It is hardly a month since I joined, so my surmise is based on a short period. Though FTII is the country���s premier institute for film-making in the country, certain aspects have not been paid close attention to. Research and publications are two majors aspects that I plan to take up in a big way. In fact, FTII had a publication called Lensight, which came out till five years ago. We plan to revive and publish it thrice a year. This should take a few months though.

Many faculties and students do some good writing on films which can give new insights and interesting perspectives on film making, which can add a lot of value to FTII. We are planning to float some research projects as well as explore the possibility of giving fellowships for film research.

My other priority will be to finish all the courses on time. Often, the first two years of the three year course finish off on time, but the third year, which involves making of a diploma film, takes an unusually long time to wind up. We are keen to cut down on that delay and finish all the courses on time.

Another initiative on our mind is to have a review of the syllabi by a committee and modify it so that it gives wider perspective of the society. There are also plans to introduce some short-term, self -financed intensive courses in ad films, history, regional cinema and Indian film studies. We also plan to increase the number of seminars, which are not tech focused, but will give a good idea of films and its various aspects.

How do you plan to earn some additional income for the institute?

We have a planned budget of around Rs 6 crore, along with a non-plan budget of Rs 7 crore and Rs 2 crore from tuition fees, royalties etc. We will definitely increase this and plan on getting sponsorships in a big way for seminars. The publications can probably generate some income from the sale of copies as well as from advertisements.

The short-term courses will also generate additional income. We will also go to alumni for getting some sponsorships. (Jaya Bachchan has instituted a Rs 25,000 worth ABCL Scholarship, for a deserving student in the acting course at FTII, while Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah have also started similar scholarships)

Any expansion plans?

We are getting an additional Rs 2.5 crore in the next budget for building an additional film-making school on global standards. We will tie up with a global film making school for this. The proposal is with the I&B ministry and has also been included in the 11th Five Year Plan.

Increasingly it is the relatives of film personalities or non-FTII people who are getting a break into films.

This is a point which has been debated for many years. Today, there are many more opportunities and more films are being produced. It is true that there are people who are getting breaks in the film industry without having a formal film education, but an FTII student with his/her in depth knowledge of the all the aspects and aesthetics of film-making will always get a preference.

An FTII alumni���s knowledge will stand him for the long haul in the film industry. Even when a relative of a film personality or a non-FTII person gets into films; he/she has to acquire the necessary knowledge from someone, without which he/she will not be able to handle any responsibility. In such a situation, all he will acquire will be just practical working knowledge, while he will never have a grasp of the theory required to bring quality to his work.

FTII was to get a deemed university status. Any progress on the same?

Yes. There are plans to get a deemed university status for FTII, but I am not the right person to speak on it. Though getting the deemed university status will add value to the degrees and diplomas of FTII.